Willier: I thought I'd ridden the Ultimate the most, however I've only ridden it the most so far this year. In total I've covered 6600 kms on it since I got it in March, and 7000 kms on the Aeroad since December.

The way the bikes are set up the Ultimate allows for a lower position. I can get lower in the drops and on the hoods because of a greater drop, and because of the 130mm stem I am more stretched out than on the Aeroad with its 120mm stem and slightly smaller drop.

The Aeroad feels somewhat more nervous and that requires just a little bit getting used to, but once I do, it feels natural, and the bike handles in a more agile manner and taking it around turns on steep descents is more comfortable. The Ultimate is more stable and is great in races.

As far as comfort goes I can't really tell any big difference. The Aeroad may feel a bit less stiff, but it is all pretty subjective. If I am going to perform a really hard effort I'll do it on the Ultimate because that's the bike I use in races, and my impression of the bikes may be skewed by that fact.

The Ultimate means business. There are no gimmicks and it's an easy bike to maintain. On the Aeroad I've had some troubles with the inserts that allows you to change fork rake. One of them came loose without me noticing, and the screw that holds it in place was stripped of its thread before I noticed anything. As a result I've epoxied the inserts to the fork. I wasn't going to swap them anyway.

I was t-boned by a car which was crossing the road from the oncoming lane. Some guy claiming the sun prevented him from seeing me. So.. not seeing and driving never was a good combination and the police quickly determined who was at fault.

I will need to replace the frame, but some of the parts on this bike are well used and would need replacement within the near future.

The following alternatives have surfaced:

1. frame replacement, move all the parts, swap out parts as they wear out2. purchase a complete, new Ultimate AL w. Ultegra Di23. purchase a complete, new Argon18 Gallium (not the Pro version) from my club/team sponsor at a decent price, however not better than the Ultimate AL from Canyon and at pretty much the same weight

What would be your decision?

I've got a DA Di2 equipped bike and I've been somewhat skeptical about the necessity of Di2 given how well a non-electronic drivetrain shifts with proper cables and housings, BUT, the Ultimate AL Di2 is a tempting package...

Ideally I'd get an Ultimate AL with DA9000 (group would have to be sourced separately from frameset) - but the price of an 11-speed Shimano cassette is somewhat prohibitive. I need at least two different cassettes (race / training) and I would easily chew through at least one, if not at least two cassettes in a year's training with about 20 000 km total.

prendrefeu: You are right of course. Fortunately I am ok and suffered no major injuries. The car had almost come to a standstill so I assumed it was safe to pass.. however just as I was about to clear him he accelerated and hit my rear triangle and then thigh/ass. I was shot off the bike and flew a few meters but didn't hurt myself, except for my knee which hit the toptube or something. Nothing major though and an injury which should heal itself fast.

Apologies reigniting an old thread but I know there are several Ultimate AL owners out there and I'm on the verge of ordering a AL SLX 9.0 SL...those of you that have had Ultimate AL's for a couple of years, are you still happy with your choice? My alternatives are the sub-£2K CF SL's (so no SLX's), and I've found myself in that awkward place of having to decide between top class aluminium and nice (but not the finest) CF. It'll be my primary bike so training/racing/sportive's...

djm: you've covered many km's on yours I understand; would you buy one again today?

djm: I appreciate your comments (and I have read your earlier posts); I guess I was hoping to hear that last line. If I go CF I think it has to be SLX which is over my budget right now, so the AL suits me.

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